1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention is directed to portable pressurized gas cylinders, and more particularly, to a handle assembly for a portable pressurized gas cylinder and a method of assembling the same.
2. Description of Related Art
A variety of pressurized gas cylinders have been used for storage and transportation of pressurized gas products for household and industrial. Many of these cylinders have traditionally been fabricated of steel. One problem for steel pressure cylinders has been portability. For steel cylinders, any handles provided are typically formed from the same steel material as the cylinder itself. Due to the properties of steel, these traditional handles have been problematic. The hardness of steel makes it unyielding when gripped, and makes it difficult to form ergonomic surfaces, all of which makes the traditional steel cylinders painful to handle, especially when filled to maximum capacity.
Attempts to form an ergonomic handle from steel have generally been limited by practicality due to the difficulty and expense involved. It is difficult and expensive to form a handle volume from a typical metallic shroud that adequately fills the hand for optimal ergonomics. The lack of volume in typical steel handles causes the contact zone of the cylinder with the hand to be too small. The weight distribution on the hand is therefore concentrated in a small area of the hand, which makes traditional cylinders painful and/or makes them effectively heavier than they actually are due to practical limitations on how much weight n be lifted comfortably by hand with such handles.
Such conventional methods and systems have generally been considered satisfactory far intended purpose. However, there is still a need in the art for handle grips that allow for improved ergonomics, and therefore improved portability. There also remains a need in the art for such grips that is easy and cost effective to manufacture and install. The present invention provides a solution for these problems.